# Competitor Spy Report — Week of [DATE]

> Use this template if you're running the manual Impressions Spy workflow (browser-only, no API). Fill in one section at a time as you research.
>
> Estimated time: 10-15 minutes for 3-5 competitors.

---

## Setup

**Date of report:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Country filter:** [US / UK / etc.]
**My category:** [supplements / SaaS / DTC apparel / etc.]
**My active ad budget:** [$/month — for context on which competitor strategies are realistic to copy]

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## Section A: Competitor Inventory

For each competitor, document the basics before you dive into ads.

### Competitor 1: [Brand Name]

- **Facebook Page URL:** [URL]
- **Page ID:** [optional — only needed for API-based version]
- **Category match:** [Direct competitor / Adjacent / Aspirational]
- **Total active ads:** [Number — shown on Ad Library page header]
- **High-impression ads (100K+):** [Number — what's left after applying the impression filter]

(Repeat for each competitor.)

---

## Section B: High-Impression Ad Inventory

> For each high-impression competitor ad (100K+ impressions, active 14+ days), fill in these fields. Skip ads under the impression threshold — they're noise.

### Ad 1

- **Brand:** [Name]
- **Hook (first line of copy):** "[Quote it directly]"
- **Headline:** "[Quote it]"
- **Format:** [Static image / Video / Carousel / Collection]
- **Visual style:** [Minimal product / Lifestyle photo / UGC selfie / Text-heavy graphic / Before-after]
- **Offer:** [What deal is being run — % off, free shipping, bundle, free trial, none]
- **Days active:** [Calculated from start date shown in Ad Library]
- **Impression range:** [100K-1M / 1M+]
- **Destination URL:** [Where the CTA goes]
- **Destination type:** [Product page / Advertorial / Quiz / Lead form / Homepage]
- **Confidence tier:** [⭐ Confirmed (60+ days) / ✓ High (30-60) / ~ Medium (14-30) / ? Early test (0-14)]
- **Notes:** [Anything else you noticed — tone, persuasion technique, emotional angle]

### Ad 2

(Repeat structure)

### Ad 3

(Repeat structure)

> Continue for all high-impression ads. You may end up with anywhere from 5 to 30 ads across all your competitors.

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## Section C: Pattern Analysis

Step back from individual ads and look for convergence across competitors. This is where the real insights come from.

### Hook Pattern Convergence

Which hook angles appear across multiple competitors?

| Hook pattern | Competitors using it | Example ad |
|---|---|---|
| [Pattern, e.g., "Personal age-defying story"] | [Brand 1, Brand 3] | [Reference] |
| [Pattern] | [Brands] | [Reference] |
| [Pattern] | [Brands] | [Reference] |

### Format Convergence

Which formats are getting the most distribution across the niche?

- [Format 1, e.g., "UGC video, 15-30 seconds"]: [N] high-impression ads across [N] brands
- [Format 2]: [N] high-impression ads across [N] brands
- [Format 3]: [N] high-impression ads across [N] brands

### Offer Structure Convergence

Which offers appear across competitors?

- [Offer pattern, e.g., "Buy 2 get 1 free + free shipping"]: [N] brands
- [Offer pattern]: [N] brands
- [Offer pattern]: [N] brands

### Confirmed Winners (60+ days, high impressions)

The ads that have survived two months at scale. These are the highest-confidence reverse-engineering targets.

| Ad reference | Brand | Hook | Format | Days active |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Ad 1] | [Brand] | [Hook] | [Format] | [N] |
| [Ad 2] | [Brand] | [Hook] | [Format] | [N] |

---

## Section D: Untested Gaps

Angles that NO competitor in your category is running. These are your differentiation opportunities.

| Gap | Why it's untested | Why you should try it |
|---|---|---|
| [e.g., "No one is running comparison ads vs. Brand X"] | [Conjecture] | [Hypothesis] |
| [Gap] | [Conjecture] | [Hypothesis] |
| [Gap] | [Conjecture] | [Hypothesis] |

---

## Section E: Killed Ads (compared to last week)

Ads that were high-impression last week but disappeared this week. Almost certainly killed because performance declined.

| Brand | Ad reference | What it was testing | Lesson |
|---|---|---|---|
| [Brand] | [Reference from last week's report] | [Hook + format] | [What this teaches you] |

> First-time running this report? Skip this section. It only works after week 2.

---

## Section F: Creative Brief for Next Batch

Based on everything above, here's what to make next week.

### Top 3 angles to test (replicate winners)

Based on hook pattern convergence — these are the angles multiple competitors have validated.

1. **[Angle 1, e.g., "Problem-centric: morning routine struggle"]**
   - Variations to produce: 4
   - Persona to target: [from brand-kit.md]
   - Visual style: [based on what's converging]
   - Sample headline directions: [3-4 options]

2. **[Angle 2]**
   - Variations to produce: 3
   - (Same structure)

3. **[Angle 3]**
   - Variations to produce: 3
   - (Same structure)

### Top untested gap to try (differentiation play)

The one gap from Section D that you'll test alongside the validated angles.

- **Gap:** [The angle no one is running]
- **Variations to produce:** 3
- **Why this one (over other gaps):** [Reason — why this gap is most aligned with your brand]

### Drop entirely

Hook angles or formats that have NO traction across the niche this week. Don't waste budget testing things that aren't working for anyone.

- [Angle to drop]
- [Format to drop]

### Total ad count for next batch

[Sum of variations above, typically 13-20 ads]

### Estimated production cost

[$ via Pillar 1's Static Ads Engine — typically $10-15 for 15-20 ads]

---

## Next Steps

1. Save this report to `./reports/spy-report-[date].md`
2. Feed the creative brief to Pillar 1's static-ad-designer skill (or build the matrix manually using the brief above)
3. Generate the new ads via Pillar 1
4. Upload via Pillar 2's bulk-uploader
5. Run again next Monday — the week-over-week comparison is where the real insights compound